Chinkin (Engraved Gold)

Chinkin (沈金, literally “sunken gold”) decorates a piece of shikki by carving directly into an already-cured lacquer surface with specialized engraving chisels, then rubbing raw urushi into the carved lines and pressing gold powder or gold leaf into them before wiping the surrounding surface clean. The gold sits recessed into the cut lines rather than built up on top of the surface, which is the opposite order of operations from maki-e, where metallic powder is sprinkled onto wet lacquer before it cures.

The result is a sharper, more linear look than maki-e’s softer, painterly sprinkled gold, closer to engraving than painting. Chinkin demands precise, steady chisel control, since a mistake cuts into the finished lacquer itself rather than sitting correctable on the surface, and it’s often used for fine line work and detail rather than broad pictorial scenes.